Simple high speed precision transconductance amplifier circuits

ABSTRACT

A simple high speed precision transconductance amplifier circuit having a low offset. The circuit uses as an input stage two substantially identical transistors of a first conductivity type connected in series so as to have the same current there through, neglecting base currents. A second stage uses two substantially identical transistors of a second conductivity type connected in series, with the output of the amplifier being a current mirrored from the second stage. The offset is maintained low by maintaining the V BE  of the transistors in the two stages substantially identical by connecting together the base and collector of one of the transistors in one stage and coupling the resulting V BE  of the transistor so coupled to one of the transistors of opposite conductivity type in the other stage. Various embodiments and variations are disclosed.

This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 08/313,546, filed Sep. 27, 1994, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,446,414.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of transconductance amplifiers.

2. Prior Art

A transconductance element is a basic building block frequently used to generate many analog functions. Many transconductance circuits are well known in the prior art. Conventional transconductance circuit topologies utilize a high gain amplifier in a negative feedback circuit to control a transconductance element. However these topologies take up more die area and are usually of slower speed than the present invention.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A simple high speed precision transconductance amplifier circuit having a low offset. The circuit uses as an input stage two substantially identical transistors of a first conductivity type connected in series so as to have the same current there through, neglecting base currents. A second stage uses two substantially identical transistors of a second conductivity type connected in series, with the output of the amplifier being a current mirrored from the second stage. The offset is maintained low by maintaining the V_(BE) of the transistors in the two stages substantially identical by connecting together the base and collector of one of the transistors in one stage and coupling the resulting V_(BE) of the transistor so coupled to one of the transistors of opposite conductivity type in the other stage. Various embodiments and variations are disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 presents a simple transconductance circuit.

FIG. 2 show an improvement to the circuit of FIG. 1 to reduce the offset characteristic of the circuit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 presents a transconductance circuit incorporating a way to match the V_(BE) of PNP and NPN transistors, regardless of the process variations or the operating condition of the circuit.

FIG. 4 presents a modified and improved version of the circuit of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 presents the circuit of FIG. 4 used as a unity gain buffer.

FIG. 6 presents a modification of FIG. 4 to provide an output current source rather than the output current sink of FIG. 4.

FIG. 7 presents the circuit of FIG. 4 modified to reference the input to the high input power connection.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The requirement of an ideal transconductance circuit is to generate an output current ##EQU1## Also the input impedance of an ideal circuit should be very high. A simple transconductance circuit is shown in FIG. 1 wherein: ##EQU2##

In this circuit, the V_(BE) of Q₁ creates an offset. Also the circuit is non-linear due to the dependence of V_(BE) on the operating current, especially when the input voltage is close to ground. A circuit to reduce the offset is shown in FIG. 2, wherein: ##EQU3##

The difference in the V_(BE) of the PNP transistor Q₁ and the NPN transistor Q₂ is smaller than the V_(BE) of Q₁ in FIG. 1, which reduces the offset and improves the linearity. For the two transistors: ##EQU4## where: ##EQU5## I_(c1) =collector current of transistor Q₁ I_(c2) =collector current of transistor Q₂

I_(s1) =saturation current of transistor Q₁

I_(s2) =saturation current of transistor Q₂

The circuit of FIG. 2 has a lower offset than that of FIG. 1. However the I_(s) of a PNP and of an NPN are not related to each other and vary independently with process variations. Furthermore, the collector current of Q₂ varies with the input voltage, whereas the collector current of Q₁ is fixed. Therefore the offset of the circuit is still fairly large due to the variation in process parameters, and the circuit still has a non-linearity due to the variation in V_(BE2) with input voltage.

What is required is some means of controlling the V_(BE) of Q₁ to match the V_(BE) of Q₂, regardless of the process variations or the operating condition of the circuit. The circuit to accomplish this is shown in FIG. 3, and forms the basis for this invention. In the circuit shown in FIG. 3, Q₃, Q₄ and Q₅ are identical devices. (Alternatively, Q₅ may be a larger device, but should operate at the same current density as Q₃ and Q₄.) Q₁ and Q₂ are also identical devices and R₁ =R₂. In the analysis that follows, base currents and output impedance effects of the transistors are ignored.

Since Q₃, Q₄ and Q₅ are identical and R₁ =R₂, a replica of the output current flows through Q₄ and thus through Q₃ in series therewith. Also V_(BE3) =V_(BE4) =V_(BE5) because of the identical transistors and equal currents.

Q₁ is biased from a PNP transistor Q₂ whose base-emitter is connected across the emitter-base of diode connected transistor Q₃ and is thus equal thereto. Because Q₁ and Q₂ are identical devices and the two transistors are connected in series so as to have the same current therethrough, the V_(BE) of Q₁ is equal to and tracks the V_(BE) of Q₃.

    i.e. V.sub.BE1 =V.sub.BE5 ##EQU6##

Thus the offset and non-linearity due to unequal V_(BE) s, is to a first order approximation, eliminated.

The circuit has been linearized by the addition of positive feedback. The loop gain is less than unity because of R₁. Also since the loop gain in less than unity, the circuit does not need to be frequency compensated, which makes high speed operation possible. However, the circuit of FIG. 3 has some drawbacks.

1) The operating current in the input follower Q₁ depends both on the input voltage and the ratio of the currents of the PNP and NPN transistors. The ratio of the currents is not controlled in typical processes, which leads to a significant variability in the operating current of Q₁.

2) The output impedance of Q₂ will cause an error.

3) The ∝ loss of Q₅ causes an error.

4) The circuit has a stable operating point with zero current regardless of the input voltage, i.e. it needs a start-up circuit.

The circuit of FIG. 3 can be modified as shown in FIG. 4 to solve the above problems. In this Figure, R₅ is added to limit the current in Q₂ and increase its output impedance. Matching resistor R₆ is added in the emitter of Q₁. The alpha-loss of Q₂ is compensated by R₇ (R₅ =R₆ =R₇). The current in Q₁ and R₆ is diminished by the base currents of Q₄ and Q₅. R₄, which equals 2 * R₅, compensates for this effect. The alpha-loss of Q₅ is compensated by the addition of R₃, which equals R₂. Finally, start-up is ensured by the base current of Q₆. I_(bias) is a small current, typically less than 5 micro amps. These modifications substantially improve the performance of the circuit. (In a typical implementation, R₃ and R₄ will be combined into a single resistance in this and the other embodiments disclosed.)

The basic transconductance circuit is a versatile building block for many applications. An example of the above circuit as a unity gain buffer wherein R₄ =R₅ =R₆ =R₇ is shown in FIG. 5. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the output is an output current sink. If an output current source is desired, the sink current of FIG. 4 may be mirrored, as shown in FIG. 6, through Q₇ to the collector of Q₈ to provide the current source output, equal to the sink output of FIG. 4 if Q₇ and Q₈ are identical transistors and R₈ =R₉, or ratioed to a different current scale factor if the areas of transistors Q₇ and Q₈ and conductances of resistors R₈ and R₉ are each correspondingly ratioed.

The inputs for the circuits of FIG. 3 through FIG. 6 are referenced to the ground or low terminal of the power supply. If it is desired to reference the same to Vcc or high terminal of the power supply, the circuits may be flipped by swapping NPN transistors for the PNP transistors and vice versa and reversing the power supply terminals (and the direction of any current sources in the circuit). As an example of this, FIG. 7 presents the circuit of FIG. 4 modified in this manner to reference the input to the high input power connection.

Similarly, the circuits of the present invention may also be realized in CMOS circuitry by replacing the NPN transistors with n-channel MOSFET devices and the PNP transistors with p-channel MOSFET devices. Thus, while the present invention has been disclosed and described with respect to certain preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be varied without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 

I claim:
 1. An amplifier comprising:first and second power supply connections, an input connection and an output connection; first and second transistors of a first conductivity type, third and fourth transistors of a second conductivity type, each having an emitter, a base and a collector, and a resistor; said first transistor having its collector coupled to said second power supply connection, its base coupled to said input connection and its emitter coupled to the collector of said second transistor and the base of said fourth transistor; said second transistor having its emitter coupled to said first power supply connection; said third transistor having its collector and base coupled to said first power supply connection and its emitter coupled to the base of said second transistor and to the collector of said fourth transistor; said fourth transistor having its emitter coupled to said output connection and through said resistor to said second power supply connection further comprised of second, third and forth resisters, wherein said first transistor has its emitter coupled through said second resistor to the collector of said second transistor and the base of said fourth transistor, said second transistor has its emitter coupled to said first power supply connection through said third resistor, and said third transistor has its base coupled to said first power supply connection through said fourth resistor.
 2. The amplifier of claim 1 wherein the second, third and fourth resistors have the same resistance.
 3. The amplifier of claim 1 further comprised of a fifth resistor coupled between said input connection and the base of said first transistor.
 4. The amplifier of claim 3 wherein the second, third, fourth and fifth resistors have the same resistance.
 5. The amplifier of claim 1 or claim 2 or claim 3 or claim 4 wherein said first and second transistors are substantially identical to each other and said third and fourth transistors are substantially identical to each other.
 6. An amplifier comprising:first and second power supply connections, an input connection and an output connection; first and second transistors of a first conductivity type, third and fourth transistors of a second conductivity type, each having an emitter, a base and a collector, and a resistor; said first transistor having its collector coupled to said second power supply connection, its base coupled to said input connection and its emitter coupled to the collector of said second transistor and the base of said fourth transistor; said second transistor having its emitter coupled to said first power supply connection; said third transistor having its collector and base coupled to said first power supply connection and its emitter coupled to the base of said second transistor and to the collector of said fourth transistor; said fourth transistor having its emitter coupled to said output connection and through said resistor to said second power supply connection a means for conducting current between the base of said second transistor and said second power supply connection.
 7. The amplifier of claim 6 wherein the means for conducting current between the base of said second transistor and said second power supply connection comprises a fifth transistor of a second conductivity type having its collector coupled to said first power supply connection, its base coupled to the base of said second transistor and its emitter coupled to said second power supply connection through a current source.
 8. A transconductance amplifier comprising:first and second power supply connections, an input connection and an output connection; first and second substantially identical transistors of a first conductivity type, and third and fourth transistors of a second conductivity type, said third and fourth transistors being substantially identical to each other, each of said transistors having an emitter, a base and a collector; said first transistor having its collector coupled to said second power supply connection, its base coupled to said input connection and its emitter coupled through a first resistor to the collector of said second transistor and the base of said fourth transistor; said second transistor having its emitter coupled through a second resistor to said first power supply connection, said first and second resistors being substantially equal; said third transistor having its collector coupled to said first power supply connection, its base coupled through a third resistor to said first power supply connection, and its emitter coupled to the base of said second transistor and to the collector of said fourth transistor; said fourth transistor having its emitter coupled to said output connection and through a fourth resistor to said second power supply connection; and, means for conducting current between the base of said second transistor and said second power supply connection.
 9. The amplifier of claim 8 further comprised of a fifth resistor coupled between said input connection and the base of said first transistor.
 10. The transconductance amplifier of claim 8 wherein the means for conducting current between the base of said second transistor and said second power supply connection comprises a sixth transistor of a first conductivity type having its collector coupled to said first power supply connection, its base coupled to the base of said second transistor and its emitter coupled to said second power supply connection through a current source.
 11. The transconductance amplifier of claim 8 wherein the transistors of the first conductivity type are PNP transistors and the transistors of the second conductivity type are NPN transistors, and said first and second power supply connections are positive and negative power supply connections, respectively.
 12. The transconductance amplifier of claim 8 wherein the transistors of the first conductivity type are NPN transistors and the transistors of the second conductivity type are PNP transistors, and said first and second power supply connections are negative and positive power supply connections, respectively. 